We take a lot of pride in our work and aren’t hesitant to compare it to the work of larger firms and government entities. Below are a few samples, along with the competing briefs or motions (all public documents):
United States v. Vaught. Vaught was accused of conspiracy to possess to distribute methamphetamine. He was tried, convicted, and sentence to life without possibility of release. On appeal, we’ve contested the sufficiency of the evidence, arguing that the government failed to produce evidence of a conspiratorial agreement. The appeal is still pending.
- Vaught Appellate Brief
- Government’s Response Brief
- Vaught Reply Brief
- Government’s Rule 28(j) Letter
- Vaught’s Rule 28(j) Letter
Villanueva v. Tarrant Regional Water District. The TRWD filed a plea to jurisdiction, arguing that Villanueva had missed filing her administrative charge in time. We responded by arguing that Congress’s Lilly Ledbetter Act changed the limitations window. These briefs provide a comparative example of the difference in brief writing styles. The appeal is still pending.
Pena v. Smith. Cindy Pena was sued for the alleged breach of a real estate sales contract. The trial court entered judgment for Smith and awarded him specific performance over the land in dispute. Our firm was retained to appeal the trial court’s judgment. We were successful on appeal; the court of appeals reversed the judgment.
United States v. DeMarquis Williams. DeMarquis Williams was charged with violating 18 U.S.C. § 371 (18 U.S.C. § 1029(a)(2)), Conspiracy to Traffic and Use Unauthorized Access Devices (credit card fraud in layman’s terms). He pleaded guilty to the charge, but preserved his rights to appeal his sentence. We handled the appeal in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and obtained a reversal on one of the two issues presented.
- Williams – Appellant’s Brief
- Williams – Government’s Brief
- United States v. Harris (Williams) – Published Opinion
United States v. Guerrero. Hugo Guerrero was charged with being involved in a conspiracy to distribute a large amount of marijuana and cocaine. His presentence report recommended a prison sentence based on the quantity of drugs involved in the conspiracy. We filed a motion for variance, arguing that the recommended guideline range should be ignored because it didn’t adequately consider his minimal role in the offense. Our client was sentenced to the statutory minimum, a material downward departure from the presentence report’s original calculation.
Federal Jurisdiction Appeal. We sometimes are hired by outside firms to assist with the drafting of motions, memorandum, and briefs. Recently, a well-known firm in the state hired us to draft an appellee’s brief on a question of federal jurisdiction. Below is a redacted portion of the brief to demonstrate the kind of work we can do for small, trial law firms. This appeal is still pending.
